2016 has been a critical year, characterized by the increasing resistance of African and Indigenous people, worldwide. As we enter 2017, we will look at some of the key moments that marked this year, 2016.
January 9 and 10, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: Themed “Organize to Win! Organize to Govern!” the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP) held our Plenary. Many young Africans, including myself, answered the call to join the revolution and became Party members. The African People’s Solidarity Committee (APSC)—the organization of North Americans or white people working under the leadership of the APSP—held its Plenary on the eleventh.
January 19 to 26, 2016: The International People’s Democratic Uhuru Movement (InPDUM) embarked on its four city #AfricanChargeGenocide Winter Encampment Tour to charge the United States government with crimes of genocide against African people in the U.S. Despite being threatened by a UN rep to get their heads “busted,” our comrades continued with the campaign, as they received support from the African community.
January 26, 2016—Australia: Thousands of Aboriginal Africans gathered to protest Australia Day—a day white settlers celebrate their theft of the land. Naming it Invasion Day, protesters denounced the celebrations and highlighted the oppression they are still experiencing.
February 9, 2016—Durham, North Carolina: Students at the School for Creative Studies celebrated their African culture during Black History Month by wearing traditional headwraps to school. The school board threatened them with suspension, but African students and their parents held demonstrations to protest.
We’re coming!
March 22, 2016—Brussels, Belgium: Islamist militants attacked Brussels with a double-bomb explosion, killing about 32 people and injured over 300 others.
March 31, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: Three African girls—La’Niyah Miller (15), Ashaunti Butler (15) and Dominique Battler (16) were murdered by the pigs of the Pinellas County’s Sheriff’s Department. Kundé Mwamvita, mother of Dominique Battle, immediately took to the front lines with the message “what you did in the dark will come to light…we’re coming.”
April 9, 2016—Harlem, New York: The Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations (BIBC) held its national conference, which was themed “The 2016 Elections and the Struggle for Self-Determination.”
April 16, 2016—Oakland, California: The African People’s Education and Defense Fund (APEDF) sponsored the “Health is Freedom Black Community Health Fair,” which was held at the Awaaba Hall in East Oakland, California.
April 16 and 17, 2017—St. Petersburg, Florida: The Uhuru Solidarity Movement (USM) held their national convention. Over $10,000 was raised, by way of the “Reparations Challenge” in material solidarity to the work of Black Star Industries (BSI).
April 20, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: InPDUM exercised Black Power when confronting Palestinian storeowner for calling a teenaged African girl a bitch. Comrades Kalambayi Andenet and Gazi Kodzo led chants against the pigs and continued until they backed down and the storeowner apologized to the young girl.
Black Power Matters!
April 24, 2016—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: APEDF sponsored another health fair event. Themed “Black Health Matters,” there was live music, exercise and dance workshops and health screenings.
April 28, 2016—Orange County, California: Hundreds of young adult Mexicans, gathered in the streets to protest then Republican nominee Donald Trump, whose campaign was built on characterizing Mexicans as criminals, thugs and rapists and threatening to build a wall.
May 21, 2016—Washington, D.C.: The African Socialist International (ASI) and the APSP participated in celebrating African Liberation Day (ALD). With the theme “Building Unity in Struggle,” ALD in Washington, D.C. was held at Howard University’s Blackburn Center.
May 22, 2016—San Mateo, California: Uhuru Foods & Pies set up two concession booths at the annual Maker Faire Bay Area. The Uhuru Foods booths offered practical training for our forces to incorporate the economic component into their work.
May 28, 2016—Bahamas: The ASI and APSP-Bahamas held ALD at the Akepran International Academy in Fox Hill. It was the fourth annual ALD celebration since the APSP-Bahamas was founded in 2013.
June 12, 2016—Orlando, Florida: 29-year-old Omar Mateen attacked the Pulse Nightclub ending in 50 deaths. According to survivors, Mateen expressed his attack was in response to the U.S. bombing of Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.
July 2-29, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: The APSP held a month-long Cadre Development School for about 40 comrades at the Uhuru House. Comrades flew in from all over the United States and from other places like the Bahamas, Sweden and the Continent to receive political and physical training.
Our African Martyrs
July 5, 2016—Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Footage was released of 37-year-old African father Alton Sterling being murdered by two Baton Rouge cops, in front of a convenience store.
July 6, 2016—Falcon Heights, Minnesota: 32-year-old African father was shot and murdered by Falcon Heights police in front of Diamond Reynolds—who streamed the whole incident on Facebook Live—and their four-year-old-daughter.
July 7, 2016—Dallas, Texas: As a protest against police violence came to an end, gunshots filled the air. 26-year-old African martyr Micah Xavier Johnson, killed five cops and injured seven others.
July 9, 2016—Houston, Texas: 38-year-old Alva Braziel, father of nine, was shot 14 times by Texas police.
July 17, 2016—Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Three Baton Rouge cops were killed and three others injured by African martyr, Gavin “Cosmo” Long.
July 19, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: Three dozen members of the Uhuru Movement gathered in front of St. Petersburg’s City Hall to attend the Mural Committee meeting being held, to demand “Black Community Control of the Mural.”
July 21, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: InPDUM held a political funeral demonstration in front of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Department to demand justice for Dominique Battle, Ashaunti Butler and La’Niyah Miller.
July 23, 2016—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The African National Women’s Organization (ANWO) held an Arrest DHS (Department of Human Services) community forum, where African mothers exposed DHS as a colonial tool of oppression.
August 1, 2016—Randallstown, Maryland: Baltimore Country police murdered 23-year-old African mother, Korryn Gaines, in her home that was raided by a S.W.A.T. team who claimed they were serving warrant for a traffic violation.
August 13, 2016—Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Africans took to the streets in heavy resistance after 23-year-old African Sylville Smith was shot and murdered by Milwaukee police.
August 13 and 14, 2016—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Black Is Back Coalition held the National Black Political Agenda for Self-Determination Conference for two days at the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia.
August 25, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: ANWO started the #BlackGirlsWrapWednesdays campaign in response to high school senior Jelani Masozi being forced to remove her African headwrap.
Forward the Struggle for Self-Determination!
September 6, 2016—Ferguson, Missouri: 29-year-old Darrens Seals, a well-known activist from Missouri who led protests following the police murder of 18-year-old Mike Brown was found murdered in his car.
September 17, 2016—Ferguson, Missouri: Kalambayi Andenet, president of InPDUM, St. Louis and friend of Darren Seals was invited to speak at Darren’s funeral service. She delivered a powerful speech, calling for African unification and organization and making a call for attendees to join the International People’s Democratic Uhuru Movement.
September 17 and 18, 2016—Ferguson, Missouri: Africans from all over the U.S. traveled to Ferguson, Missouri—ground zero of African resistance—for the InPDUM 25th anniversary convention.
September 20, 2016—Charlotte, North Carolina: The African community fought the police in retaliation to the police murder of Keith Lamont Scott and other Africans, murdered by police, before him.
October 4, 2016—Ayiti: Because of the colonial infrastructure, over a thousand African lives were lost to Hurricane Matthew—a category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 145pmh. About a thousand others are left homeless.
October 24, 2016—St. Petersburg, Florida: The African community, led by InPDUM, put up a new street sign named after 18-year-old TyRon Lewis, who was murdered by the police 20 years prior, with no “license” from the city. There is now a struggle to keep it up and exercise our right to self-determination and power.
November 5 and 6, 2016—Washington, D.C.: The BIB led the National Black Political Agenda for Self-Determination Convention, gathering the African community, including various organizations and mothers whose children, relatives or spouses have been murdered by police are white vigilanties. A discussion was held around the 19-point Black People’s Agenda.
November 9, 2016: Donald Trump was selected as the next U.S. imperialist leader. Many Africans were stunned, some disappointed that Hillary Clinton ‘lost’ the electoral vote. There has been a number, however, that now see that revolution is the only solution!
November 25, 2016: Revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro dies at the age of 90 in his beloved town of Santiago. As imperialists and parasitic capitalists celebrate the death of Comandante Fidel, the rest of the world mourns the loss of the leader of the Cuban Revolution.
Imperialism has revealed itself to be in crisis in 2016 and as Africans, it is our job to deepen the crisis. Make your New Year’s Resolution to join the revolution!
Join the African People’s Socialist Party!
Uhuru!
